A Shadow in the Glass Episode III: Reflected Shadow
by Esther Huffleclaw
Summary: Now a Jedi Knight, Anneke Skywalker must hide a very important secret from the Council lest they expel her from the Order. And now, the Emperor has taken an interest in her. Her choices will decide the fate of the galaxy.
1. Spring the Trap

Flames billowed out into space, a blossom of savage colour against the lifeless black as Anneke maneuvered her small ship, firing at the Trade Federation cruiser's shield generator. Obi Wan's starfighter shot past hers into the hangar bay. He hit the deck hard and skidded, throwing up a shower of sparks in his wake, reflecting yellow and orange off the parked ships. His damaged ship finally came to a stop, and Obi Wan's lightsaber blade appeared, cutting through the cockpit. Apparently, the controls to open the top were dead as well.

Anneke brought her starfighter to a stop next to her master's, and opened her cockpit. Battle droids were already coming in through the far door, converging on the intruders. As she leapt to the deck, lightsaber in hand, Obi Wan's ship exploded, throwing him clear. She took a step toward him, but to her relief, he landed on his feet, unharmed.

The battle droids advanced on them, firing blasters which the Jedi blocked, their blades flashing faster than the eye could follow.

"Artoo, locate the Chancellor," Obi Wan instructed the astromech droid that had followed Anneke from her ship. R2D2 rolled over to a port on the wall, and tapped into the ship's computers. As Anneke and Obi Wan finished off the battle droids, a holographic schematic of the ship's layout appeared, a blinking indicator visible on the observation platform.

Anneke frowned as she became aware of a familiar, malevolent Force presence. "I sense Count Dooku."

Obi Wan nodded. "I sense a trap."

"Next move?" she asked.

He grinned. "Spring the trap."

* * *

><p>"Yuck!" Anneke wrinkled her nose, nearly choking on the smell. Large pipes overhead were leaking a stinking viscous fluid—fuel. With the relative ease born of long practice, she took control over the urge to vomit and pushed it away.<p>

"Turn off your saber!" Obi Wan said as he deactivated his. "The slightest spark will send this ship into oblivion." He nodded at the droids that had been chasing them. "That's why they've stopped shooting."

She switched her saber off and clipped it to her belt. "Then we're safe for the time being."

He stared at her, slowly shaking his head. "Your idea of safe is not the same as mine."

Though not firing, the droids were still coming. Damaging them ran the risk of creating sparks, so the Jedi ran, slipping on the fuel that continued to spurt from broken pipes along the roof. Anneke breathed as shallowly as possible; she would _not_ be sick, not here. Grating, grinding sounds echoed through the halls, and the ship shook under their feet.

"It sounds like they're sealing off this section." Anneke skidded around a corner, catching Obi Wan's arm to balance him as he nearly lost his feet.

"Keep moving," he said. "More droids coming our way."

"There has to be a way out." Anneke stopped at a vent halfway up the wall.

Obi Wan shook his head, eyeing the vent. "Too small."

Anneke reached out with the Force, seeking a larger passageway. The fuel sloshed around their knees now, and was quickly rising. Running was no longer possible. They walked as quickly as they could, searching for an exit. The smell grew as the fuel rose, making it harder and harder to control her gag reflex.

As the fuel came to her waist, she sensed an opening in the ceiling several feet ahead. "This way!" she called, half-swimming forward. By the time they arrived at the opening, they were swimming in earnest, the odorous fluid carrying them up toward a tiny grating overhead. She reached up and grabbed it.

"Are you sure?" Obi Wan eyed the grating dubiously.

"Trust me, Master." She yanked on the grating, pulling it free, then caught the edge of the tiny opening and twisted. "Look: no structure." She ripped a ceiling panel free, revealing a large access shaft they could easily crawl into.

* * *

><p>Anneke and Obi Wan clambered out of a hatch into another hallway. Her relief at escaping the worst of the stench nearly made her lightheaded. Obi Wan slammed it shut behind them, and Anneke welded it shut with her lightsaber, taking care not to let any sparks touch her fuel-soaked clothing. She spared a moment to wish they had time to change, that they had something to change <em>into<em>; the smell wafting up from her robes was still enough to turn her stomach.

"That won't hold when the fuel reaches the power dischargers," Obi Wan warned.

"The blast will break out through the hull," Anneke said confidently. "This side's pressurized."

Obi Wan shook his head, unconvinced.

A distant boom echoed through the ship, and the bulkhead around the hatch bulged out, but held. Obi Wan jumped back, staring. "All right, you win." He turned away from the wall. "Let's go!"

Anneke grinned with pride—Obi Wan didn't often admit he was wrong—and followed him down yet another hallway. At the end, they stopped before an elevator, and Obi Wan pressed the call button. A familiar rolling sound reached her ears, and she turned around, saber at the ready. "Destroyers, Master!"

Obi Wan grabbed her arm and dragged her inside the elevator where they came to a sudden stop, facing a group of battle droids that shared the elevator with them. The Jedi exchanged a split-second glance, then activated their lightsabers, and cut the droids to pieces.

The elevator began to move, then ground to a halt. Obi Wan raised a eyebrow at Anneke. "Did you press the stop button?" His voice was mocking.

She copied his expression, folding her arms. He would have seen if she had pressed any buttons. "No. Did you?"

"No!" His lips twitched as if he were trying not to laugh.

She grinned slyly and raised her saber, the blade casting blue reflections around the enclosed space. "There's more than one way out of here."

He sighed. "We don't want to get _out_. We want to get moving." He pressed an intercom button on the wall. "Artoo? Artoo, do you copy? Activate elevator…" He squinted at the panel. "31174."

Ignoring him, Anneke cut a hole in the ceiling. It didn't sound like Artoo was responding, and patience had never been one of her strong suits. Over the last few months, she found it increasingly difficult to stand still for even a few minutes. Her thoughts veered away, dangerously close to a secret even Obi Wan couldn't know.

"Artoo?" Obi Wan said again. Still no response.

Anneke clipped her saber to her belt and grabbed the edges of the hole she had made in the ceiling. Drawing on the Force for assistance, she hauled herself up and out to stand on top of the elevator car. There was more relief from the stench of the fuel here. Her own clothing still reeked, but at least it was fainter now that she wasn't standing next to Obi Wan's also soaked clothes in a small, enclosed space.

She jumped and caught a handhold on the side of the shaft just as the car plummeted from beneath her feet. _Master!_ She watched in horror as it disappeared from sight. She shook her head. He would be all right. He had to be. She'd seen him come through far worse unscathed. She craned her neck to look around the shaft, and spotted a door. Leaping over to it, she pried it open with her mechanical hand. Stronger than flesh, the prosthetic often was quite useful.

Two battle droids appeared in the hallway just outside the door. "Hands up, Jedi! Don't move."

Sensing something below, Anneke looked down to see the elevator car racing back up toward her. She pushed herself up and flipped into the air, landing lightly on top of the car. Deactivating her lightsaber, and bracing herself for the return of the overpowering stink of fuel, she dropped back down through the hole in the ceiling.

Obi Wan spun toward her, then relaxed and lowered his blade. "Oh; it's you."

She clipped her own saber to her belt. "What was that all about?"

Obi Wan switched his lightsaber off. "Well, Artoo has been—"

She glared at him.

He widened his eyes in mock innocence. "Did I say anything? I didn't say anything!"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You were thinking it."

"Now you can read minds? Your powers _are_ growing, aren't they?"

She turned her back on him, folding her arms across her chest. No, she couldn't read his mind, but she could feel his amusement, and she had to bite her lip to stop herself from smiling. Of course, it was pointless, as he could read her as well as she could read him… most of the time. If she really focused, she could hide things from him.

* * *

><p>A woozy, swooping sensation grabbed Anneke's insides when they stepped from the elevator onto the observation platform. Count Dooku's malevolent presence permeated the very air, and she gritted her teeth, resisting the urge to clutch at her prosthetic arm. It took a moment to register Chancellor Palpatine seated in a large, ornate chair, his wrists manacled to the arms.<p>

"There is no emotion; there is peace," she recited under her breath, trying to bring her traitorous body back under control. "There is no ignorance; there is knowledge."

Obi Wan glanced at her, and she straightened her shoulders, nodding reassuringly at him. He didn't look completely convinced she was okay, but he turned away and approached the Chancellor, his eyes scanning the room. The swish of a door sliding open spun both Jedi around. Dooku strode out onto a balcony, his black cape swirling around his knees.

"There is no passion; there is serenity," Anneke whispered, raising her lightsaber, her insides twisting and roiling. "There is no death; there is the Force."

Obi Wan stood beside her, his shoulder just about touching hers, a solid, reassuring presence. "This time, we do it together."

She managed a half-grin. "I was about to say that."

Palpatine's quavering voice called from behind them, "Get help! You're no match for him. He's a Sith Lord."

"Don't worry, Chancellor," Obi Wan replied, his voice steady, confident. "We know what he is."

Count Dooku leapt lightly from the balcony to stand before them. "Now, Master Jedi. We don't want to make a mess in front of the Chancellor, do we?" he said mockingly.

Obi Wan advanced slowly, his blade glowing green before him. "You won't get away this time, Dooku."

Dooku laughed. "I've been looking forward to this." He slashed with his red blade, connecting with Obi Wan's saber.

Obi Wan retreated, barely blocking Dooku's furious attack, but Anneke was there, her blade connecting with Dooku's and driving the Sith back in turn. Memory of the last time she had faced the Count twisted her insides into knots; angrily, she pushed the fear away, advancing on Dooku in a fury. She was stronger now. She had learned much since Dooku had taken her hand and, nearly, her life. She would not fail this time—she had too much to live for.

With Obi Wan at her side, she followed the Sith as he retreated up the stairs back to the balcony. She could feel her master's concern for her—he could probably sense her anger at Dooku—but she ignored it. There was no time. As they reached the top, a sudden push from the Count took her by surprise and sent her flying. Her left shoulder struck the wall, sending a sharp pain through her good arm, and she fell to her hands and knees, trying to catch her breath. Sensing distress from her master, she pushed herself back to her feet with a growl. Dooku had lifted Obi Wan into the air with the Force, and her master was hanging helpless, choking on nothing.


	2. Stumbling Through Darkness

Anneke rushed Dooku, and he flicked his wrist, tossing Obi Wan over the edge of the balcony. He fell in a heap on the lower level and lay still. She could feel his Force presence still; he was alive, but unconscious. Anneke spun into a kick, pushing Dooku with the Force as her foot connected, sending the Sith Lord after Obi Wan over the edge. She followed, landing lightly beside Dooku as he regained his feet. Their sabers crashed together, sending red and blue sparks flying.

"I sense great fear in you, Skywalker," Dooku said, his voice mocking. "You have hate and anger, but you don't know how to use them."

Anneke let out a short bark of laughter. "Yes, I do." She twisted her blade against his, knocking him off balance with the Force, and for just a second, his guard was open. Instantly, she brought her blade down, slicing through his wrist. He stared at his severed hand as it fell to the floor, and a wild exultation raged through her. She snatched the falling red lightsaber from the air as he fell to his knees before her, and brought both blades together in an x just below his chin. "I am twice as powerful as when last we met, Count."

He sneered at her. "Twice the pride; double the fall."

Her hands clenched on the saber hilts. The rage within her was so intense that she was shaking. This was the man who had sentenced Padraig to die, who had nearly killed her master… twice. "I'm not the one who has fallen." With a quick, scissor-like motion, she brought both blades together, slicing off his head.

"Good, Anneke. Good." The Chancellor's voice jerked her head up, and she stared at him, her breath coming in gasps. "You did well."

"I…shouldn't have done that." It was difficult to think, as if her mind were stumbling through darkness. She stared at her hands, still gripping the two lightsaber hilts. They were shaking.

Palpatine tutted. "He was too dangerous to be kept alive."

She shook her head, trying to clear it. "He was defeated and unarmed. This is not the Jedi way."

"It is only justice, young Skywalker. He cut off your arm, and you cut off his. And he would have killed you given the chance. You were merely faster than he." Palpatine inclined his head. "Now, if you could assist me…?"

"Of–of course." As if moving through a dream, Anneke clipped both lightsabers to her belt, and reached out with the Force to release the Chancellor's bindings. Part of her yet gloried in her triumph over Dooku, though another part shrank in horror from what she had done, avoiding the grisly sight of the body lying on the deck.

Palpatine stood and straightened his clothes. "We must leave before more security droids arrive."

"Wait." Anneke went to Obi Wan's side, and knelt to check on him.

"Anneke, there is no time." Palpatine had crossed the room and stood by the elevator. "We must get off the ship."

Anneke ignored him. "No broken bones," she muttered. "He's breathing all right."

"Leave him," Palpatine insisted, "or we'll never make it."

She glared at him and, for a second, thought she saw a flicker of satisfaction in his eyes, but it was gone so quickly, she might have imagined it. Drawing on the Force to assist her, she lifted her master's limp, unresponsive body over her left shoulder.

Palpatine jabbed at the elevator call button, but nothing happened. Just as Anneke reached him, the ship's gravity turned sideways and the doors slid open. Catching the edge of the opening, Anneke hauled herself and Obi Wan inside the now horizontal elevator shaft. "Come on," she said to Palpatine, who was awkwardly following her. "We have to be fast."

The Chancellor was surprisingly nimble for his age. Then Anneke remembered that he was from Naboo, like Padraig, and they were both politicians. She hid a smile. Her husband still surprised her sometimes with the things he could do. Politicians on Naboo had a very eclectic education.

For just a moment, she allowed herself to feel how much she missed Padraig. The war in the Outer Rim had dragged on and on. It had been four months since she had seen him, and then they'd had one night before she shipped out again. And before that, she hadn't seen him for nearly a year. Once they escaped this ship, and returned Palpatine to the Senate, she would see him again. She wanted… needed to talk to him.

She banished thoughts of Padraig as the floor beneath her feet began to tip. The gravity was righting itself, and this would soon be a wall again. She frantically looked for a door, but could see nothing. She lost her feet and began to slide. Grabbing blindly for something to arrest her fall, her mechanical hand caught hold of a broken control box on the wall. As he slid past her, Palpatine seized her ankle. The gravity chose that moment to right itself completely, leaving them hanging over an abyss that vanished into darkness.

Obi Wan groaned and tried to lift his head. Tightening her grip on him, Anneke said, "Easy, Master. We're in a bit of a situation."

"Did I miss something?" He asked wryly.

Anneke snorted in laughter. Then the gravity tilted again, tipping them on an angle. A hissing groan sounded from above, and she looked up to see the elevator car racing down through the gloom. "Jump!" she yelled, and let go of the control panel.

Sliding down the sharply tilted wall, Anneke was grateful that Obi Wan was recovered enough that she no longer needed to carry him. He slid beside her, both of them using the Force to speed their descent and, that of the Chancellor, who looked about to faint.

Spotting an open door on the side of the shaft ahead, Anneke grabbed Palpatine's arm. Obi Wan saw her intention, and grabbed his other arm. They pushed off the wall and swung through the door, landing heavily in the hallway outside. As they picked themselves up, the elevator car roared past.

Obi Wan helped the Chancellor to his feet. "Let's see if we can find something in the hangar that's still flyable."

* * *

><p>The hangar was a wreck. The shifts in gravity had tossed everything around, smashing it to bits. Palpatine gazed around in horror. "What are we going to do?"<p>

"Head toward the bridge," Obi Wan said. "Maybe we can find an escape pod."

* * *

><p>A glittering barrier erupted before Anneke in the hallway, and she skidded to a stop. Obi Wan stopped beside her and Palpatine nearly ran into them. Turning around, she sighed. There was an identical barrier behind them. "Ray shields." She blew out her breath in an annoyed gust.<p>

* * *

><p>Captured again. Anneke glared at the hideous skeletal droid known as General Grievous. She refused to admit defeat. He had brought them to the bridge, and that is exactly where they wanted to be, after all.<p>

"That wasn't much of a rescue," Grievous wheezed. He held their lightsabers, fingering them with his metal, spider-like hands. "General Kenobi, the Negotiator... and Anneke Skywalker—I was expecting someone of your reputation to be… older." His voice was derisive.

"General Grievous," Anneke said coldly. "I expected you to be taller."

"Jedi scum," he rasped, his skull-like face gazing down at her, expressionless, yet somehow conveying fury.

Obi Wan gave her a quelling look. "Anneke, don't provoke him."

Grievous laughed harshly. "Your lightsabers will make a fine addition to my collection."

"Not this time," Obi Wan said.

On cue, R2D2 rolled into the room, shooting sparks that bounced off the walls and ceiling, generally creating chaos.

Calling his lightsaber to his hand, Obi Wan cut his own, then Anneke's bonds. She reached out and called her own saber, activating the blade as it came.

"Crush them!" Grievous croaked. His droid bodyguards advanced on the Jedi, spinning electrified staves before them.

Out of the corner of her eye, Anneke saw two battle droids dragging Chancellor Palpatine off the bridge. Beside her, Obi Wan engaged with one of the bodyguards. Drawing heavily on the Force, Anneke leapt forward, and slashed the other bodyguard in half, then ran after Palpatine. Power raging through her, she easily cut down the battle droids, then turned back to assist her master.

Obi Wan had finished off the other bodyguard, and stood facing Grievous. The deck beneath their feet dropped suddenly, and the pilot yelled, "We're falling out of orbit. All aft control cells are dead!"

Grievous didn't take his eyes off Obi Wan. "Stay on course," he ordered. "Keep the ship in orbit." He picked up an electrified staff. "You lose, General Kenobi."

"Sir!" The pilot's voice was panicked. "The ship is breaking up!"

Grievous turned and flung the staff at the fore window, smashing it, and leaping through the hole. For a few seconds, a rushing wind tore through the bridge until a blast shield snapped into place over the broken window. The pilot and the navigator stood as one man and ran from the bridge.

"The hull is burning up!" Palpatine pointed out the window.

Anneke half fell into the navigator's chair. Pulling up schematics on the computer, she groaned. "All the escape pods have been launched."

Obi Wan came up to stand behind her. "Can you fly a cruiser like this?

Anneke snorted. "Do you mean, do I know how to land what's left of it?" She switched chairs to the pilot's seat.

"Well?" Obi Wan said as calmly as if he were asking about the weather. "Do you?"

"Under the circumstances, I'd say the ability to pilot this thing is irrelevant." She ran her hands over the controls, figuring out where everything was. "Strap yourselves in."


	3. A Shiver of Dread

Senator Padraig Andelko made his way through the corridors of the Senate building on Coruscant, trying not to run. It wouldn't do for the representative of the sovereign system of Naboo to be seen racing through the hallways like an excited child.

When the news had reached him that General Kenobi and Anneke Skywalker had returned to Coruscant, having rescued the Chancellor from the Sith Lord Dooku, he had not trusted himself to be in public for several hours while he waited for the official Jedi business to be completed. The huge grin on his face would have caused too many questions. His friendship with Palpatine would not have explained his overwhelming joy.

Everyone was talking about how the Jedi Knight Anneke Skywalker had crash landed a Trade Federation cruiser at the docks in the industrial area of Coruscant, somehow managing not to kill anybody, though the ship had been nearly unflyable. Padraig's chief emotions were relief that she was safe and joy that he would soon see her. The past seventeen weeks, two days, eleven hours, twenty-two minutes—but who was counting?—had been torture, not knowing if he would see her name on the list of injured or dead each day.

The sound of several feet and the murmur of voices sent him ducking behind one of the massive marble pillars that lined the hallway. He peeked out to see a group of his fellow Senators walk by. Feeling like a fool, he was about to slip away when he recognised a young Jedi talking to Senator Bail Organa at the rear of the crowd. His heart leapt. Anneke!

She raised her head as if she had heard something, then made some sort of excuse, and stepped away from the group to stand across from his hiding place, looking out over the city as if lost in thought. He wanted to run to her, but made himself stay where he was, drinking in the sight of her. She was so beautiful.

As soon as the other Senators were out of sight, she turned and strode directly toward him. A few strands of golden hair had escaped the simple twist at the back of her neck, and his fingers itched to brush them back from her face. His fingers itched to do a few more things, too.

As she reached him, Anneke slid her hands around his neck, and he bent his head to meet her lips, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close. For a long moment, they were simply lost in each other. Then, he pulled back just a bit to say, "Anni, I've missed you so much." His voice was nearly a groan. He ran his hands up and over her shoulders to cup her face.

She met his eyes, a soft smile on her face. "I'm back. I'm all right. Though, if the Chancellor hadn't been kidnapped, I was starting to think they would never bring us back from the Outer Rim." She dropped her eyes, her lower lip caught in her teeth. "I don't know what I would have done if…" Her voice trailed off.

He let his hands fall to her shoulders. "Anni? What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong." She raised shining eyes to his. "It's… well..."

"What is it? What's happened?" She looked happy, yet there was something guarded, almost fearful, in her eyes.

"I'm… I'm pregnant."

He stared at her, his mind a whirl. How had this happened? Well, he knew how it had happened; he even knew when—they had spent one night together the last time she was on Coruscant, before she had left for the Outer Rim. She had slipped out of the Jedi Temple after dark and found her way to his quarters. They were usually careful, but that night they hadn't been thinking about anything except how long it had been since they'd seen each other, and how long it might be before they saw each other again.

She had left before dawn, kissing him goodbye in the early morning greyness, and he hadn't realized how foolish he had been until she was gone. Of course, she couldn't have sent a message telling him—it could so easily be intercepted—but as the weeks passed, his worries had faded. Not that it was much of an excuse, but he had so much on his mind lately.

What would the Jedi Council do when they found out? Were there protocols, procedures in place for such an eventuality? Would she be expelled from the Order? One clear thought suddenly broke through the din in his head: I'm going to be a father. A smile spread across his face. "That's… that's wonderful."

She returned his smile, then shook her head. "I don't know what I'm going to do..."

He shook his head. "We don't know what tomorrow may bring, but we face it together, remember?"

She nodded, taking a deep breath. "What are _we_ going to do?"

"Let's not worry about it right now, okay?" He brushed his lips across hers. "This is a happy moment."

* * *

><p>Padraig woke suddenly. Something was wrong. He rolled over, and Anneke was gone, the place where she had lain still warm from her body. Sitting up, he picked up his pants from the floor and tugged them on. Then he went looking for her.<p>

As he came down the stairs to the veranda, he spotted her sitting on one of the couches, her head in her hands. He sat next to her and slid his arm around her shoulders. "What's wrong?"

She raised her head, and her eyes were wet with tears. "A dream."

He tightened his arm around her. "What kind of dream?"

She swallowed. "Like the ones I used to have about my mother before she died."

He lifted his free hand and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "And?"

She ducked her head and leaned against him, hiding her face in his chest. Her voice was muffled when she spoke. "It was about you."

He took a deep breath, let it out slowly. "Tell me."

"It was only a dream." Her voice was choked.

He put a hand under her chin and lifted her face. "Do you really believe that?"

She shook her head, her face twisting in misery.

He pushed his fear down hard, remembering what had happened to her mother. "Tell me," he said again.

She took a shuddering breath, fresh tears springing to her eyes. "You were shot. By an assassin. I tried to reach you, but I was too slow." Her voice broke.

"An assassin." He pulled her close, cradling her in his arms. "That sounds like the Trade Federation. They're still working with the Separatists."

She pulled back, pinning him with a fierce gaze. "I _won't_ let this dream become real!"

"I might need a bodyguard again." That got a small smile from her, and he grinned, pleased. Then he sobered, tightening his arms around her. "I don't want to put you in danger, though, especially now. Do you think Obi Wan might be able to help us?"

She shook her head. "I don't know. He doesn't know about the–the baby."

"But he's your mentor, your best friend." And a Jedi. Padraig didn't know that much about their abilities, but there were rumours that at least some of them could read thoughts. That was probably just a rumour, though. He hoped. "He must suspect something."

She shook her head. "He _can't_ know. He's on the Council. It wouldn't be fair to ask him to choose between me and his duty." He bit her lip. "I could talk to him about assigning you a bodyguard, but I think he already suspects my feelings toward you. Besides…" Her voice trailed off.

He sat back on the couch, lacing his fingers through hers. "Besides, we need every soldier and Jedi for the war effort." He brushed her hair back from her face with his free hand. "It's okay. I can take care of myself. I do have my own security."

* * *

><p>Palpatine leaned back in his chair, watching Anneke through half-closed eyes that almost seemed to look through her. She sat on the edge of her chair, trying not to fidget. She had never been in his office before, and she felt out of place here in the heart of political power. This was Padraig's arena, not hers.<p>

"You're of course wondering why I asked you to come here," the Chancellor remarked. Not waiting for a response, he continued, "I wanted to thank you personally for saving my life."

She nodded, bemused. Obi Wan had been there too, so why wasn't he here? She almost asked the question, but changed her mind, intimidated beyond anything she had ever felt; even facing the Jedi Council wasn't this unnerving.

Palpatine leaned forward, his hands clasped on the dark, mirrored surface of his desk. "I also wanted to ask a favour of you."

He smiled, and a shiver of dread ran up Anneke's spine. She shook her head slightly, bewildered at her reaction. This was Padraig's friend and mentor, and he had done so much for them. They owed him several favours. "Of–of course, Chancellor," she said.

He waved a hand as if banishing an irritating fly. "Please, my young friend: call me Palpatine. I feel as if I know you, the way Padraig talks of you." His pale greyish eyes bored into hers. "I foresee that you and I are going to be great friends."

She blinked and looked away, focusing on his hands. There was something unnerving about his gaze. "Yes, of course, Chan—Palpatine."

"Anneke, this afternoon, the Senate is going to call on me to take direct control of the Jedi Council."

Her gaze flashed back up to his. "What? The Jedi will no longer report to the Senate?"

He nodded, an expression of regret on his face. "They will report to me… personally. The Senate is too unfocused to conduct a war. This will help to bring a quick end to things."

"Yes," she said slowly, "but the Council may not see it that way." It was an understatement, of course. The Council resented any outside interference.

He spread his hands in a helpless gesture. "I have no choice. This war must be won."

She took a deep breath. "Everyone can agree on that."

"And…" He folded his hands on his desk, bowing his head. "I need your help."

Her eyes widened. What could she do? "My help?"

"Yes. As you said, the Council won't like this, so I will need someone to act as… go-between." He raised his head again, his strange pale eyes unsettling her again. "I am appointing you to be my personal representative on the Jedi Council."

"I–I don't understand. On the Council?" She bit her lip. "The Council elects its own members. They will never accept this."

Palpatine smiled, and she suppressed the urge to shudder. "I think they will," he said with assurance.

She made no reply, clenching her hands together in her lap, rubbing her left thumb over the metal fingers of her right hand. This man was Padraig's friend. Padraig trusted him, and they had known each other for years. She simply didn't know him well enough to make any judgements on his character or motives. She had to trust him.


	4. Inevitable Defeat

Anneke rushed into the lecture hall, trying not to feel like a truant student. To her dismay, the hall was empty but for Obi Wan, who stood at the front, putting away his charts and maps. "You missed the report on the Outer Rim sieges," he said without looking up.

"I'm sorry, Master." She stood before him, resisting the urge to shuffle her feet. "I have no excuse."

"In short, they are going very well. Saleucami has fallen, and Master Vos has moved his troops to Boz Pity." Obi Wan fiddled with his charts, avoiding her eyes. She sensed emotional disquiet in his Force presence.

She frowned. "What's wrong then?"

"The Senate is expected to vote more executive powers to the Chancellor today."

"Yes." She took a deep breath. "He told me."

Obi Wan's gaze snapped up to meet hers. "Who told you?"

She blinked, unnerved by the intensity in his eyes. "The Chancellor. He asked me to be his liaison with the Council."

Obi Wan's mouth fell open, and he stared at her in shock. "He did what?"

She gripped her prosthetic with her left hand, rubbing her thumb across the metal fingers. "He appointed me his 'personal representative' on the Jedi Council."

Obi Wan sat down suddenly in the chair behind him. "This is unexpected." He pinned her with his gaze. "Why you?"

She looked down, uncomfortable. "I–I don't know."

She heard him rise and stride over to stand in front of her. "Does he have something over you, Anneke?" His voice was surprisingly gentle. "Does he know something… something you've been keeping from the Council—from me?"

Sudden terror gripped her. "I—" She looked up and met his eyes, and the compassion there struck her speechless.

He reached out gently and took hold of her upper arms. "Tell me."

Something inside her broke, and the tears she had never let him see spilled over. "I don't want to ask you… It's not fair to you…" She turned away from the pain in his eyes, wrapping her arms around herself. A sense of inevitable defeat took hold of her. "I can't hide it much longer, anyway," she whispered, and dropped the shields that hid the life within from those sensitive to the Force.

A choked gasp from his direction told her he had seen, but she didn't turn around. She didn't want to see the disappointment, the betrayal, in his eyes. He was silent for a long moment, then he said in a voice that hardly sounded like him, "Padraig is the father."

She nodded. "We were married on Naboo," she whispered. Now that the gates were open, the truth continued to pour out. "After Geonosis, when I saw him home."

"I knew… I knew something…" His voice was strangled. She had never known her master to be so at a loss for words. His hand fell on her shoulder, and she flinched, turning as if compelled to meet his eyes. The hurt she had expected wasn't there; instead there was only a deep sorrow and weariness. "I'm sorry, Anneke," he said. "I failed you so greatly, and so many times."

"No!" She turned to face him fully. "No, you didn't. You were the best master I could have asked for." She swallowed hard. "I love him. It was my choice to be with him. Nothing you could have done could have stopped me."

He closed his eyes. "I should have tried."

She gripped her right hand tightly in her left. "Will the Council expel me from the Order?"

His eyes flew open. "What?"

She stared at her hands. "Attachment is forbidden. They can't let me stay, can they?"

"Anneke—" He broke off, and she could feel the conflict within him. "The Council is busy with the war," he continued slowly, each word sounding as if it were being ripped from him. "We need every Jedi right now."

Her eyes widened and she looked up at him, stunned. "But… you'll tell them… won't you?"

He scrubbed his hand over his face. "They'll find out eventually. This isn't something you can hide forever." His piercing gaze met hers. "But they won't find out from me."

Her knees nearly gave way, and with an exclamation, he caught her elbow. Guiding her to the chair, he made her sit over her protests that she was fine.

Going to one knee beside her, he said, "Don't do that in the Council chambers, or they'll know something's up. Jedi don't faint."

Surprised, she let out a half-laugh that was more of a sob.

"The Force grows dark, Anneke," he said gravely. "Be mindful of your feelings."

* * *

><p>The doors to the Council Chambers swung slowly open, and Anneke entered, trying to dismiss the notion that she was going to trial. She stopped in the centre of the room, her hands clasped together before her, hidden in the long sleeves of her dark robe.<p>

Mace Windu leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. "Anneke Skywalker, we have approved your appointment to the Council as the Chancellor's personal representative."

She inclined her head, feeling Obi Wan's gaze on her from his Council chair.

Yoda nodded slowly. "Allow this appointment lightly, the Council does not," he said. "Disturbing is this move by Chancellor Palpatine."

Anneke nodded. "I understand."

"You are on this Council," Mace continued, "but we do not grant you the rank of Master."

Anneke's mouth fell open, and she quickly closed it. What had she expected? They could have denied her a place on the Council altogether—she had almost thought they might. It was unprecedented for one so young as she to be on the Council, and no one had ever been appointed by a non-Jedi before.

Mace indicated an empty chair. "Take a seat, young Skywalker."

She sat and listened, saying nothing as strategy and tactics were decided around her. She was on the Council, but her voice was not likely to be welcomed here, and she would rather stay unnoticed. Her shields were strong, but the power in this circle was immense; they could easily find out her secret if they but knew to look for it.

* * *

><p>Anneke breathed a sigh of relief as the Council doors closed behind Obi Wan and herself. Though she had tried to pay attention to the plans and strategies they had discussed, her head was too full of swirling thoughts and worries.<p>

"You did well, Anneke," Obi Wan said, his presence at her side reassuring as they walked the vaulted hallways.

Anneke blinked and stopped, turning to stare at him. "I did nothing. I said nothing."

He stopped as well, and smiled crookedly at her. "And you did it well. Anneke, the Council was not pleased. There is tension between us and the Chancellor. For him to appoint you… well…" He shook his head. "Saying nothing was the most diplomatic thing you could do."

Anneke nodded slowly. She could sense that there was something else on Obi Wan's mind, though, something that was bothering him. "I sense there's something more," she said quietly, turning and starting to walk again.

He took a deep breath and sighed, falling into step beside her. "Anneke, the only reason the Council has approved your appointment is because the Chancellor trusts you."

She nodded. "I see." Though she really didn't.

He closed his eyes, his steps unfaltering. "I didn't want to see you put in this situation."

She frowned. He was starting to worry her. "What situation?"

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, his gaze straight ahead. "The Council wants you to report on all of the Chancellor's dealings. They want to know what he's up to."

Her mouth fell open, and she stopped again, turning to gape at him. "They want me to spy on the Chancellor?" As if she didn't have enough on her mind already!

He nodded, stopping but not turning to look at her. "The Jedi Council is sworn to uphold the principles of the Republic, even if the Chancellor does not." He finally met her eyes. "We are at war, Anneke."

She shook her head slowly, not sure what she was denying or protesting. "Why didn't the Council give me this assignment when we were in session?"

"This assignment is not to be on record." His gaze was sympathetic. "The Council asked me to approach you on this personally."

"The Chancellor isn't a bad man," she whispered, unsure who she was trying to convince. "He _can't_ be." She could feel tears pricking the backs of her eyes. "He's Padr–Senator Andelko's friend. He knows about us. He helped us."

Obi Wan's eyes widened, then he nodded slowly. "I see. And now you owe him a debt."

"No!" She shook her head violently. "It's not like that. He's been Padraig's friend and mentor for years; he _wanted_ to help!"

"Use your feelings, Anneke," Obi Wan said softly. "Something is out of place."

She opened her mouth to protest again, then shut it and swallowed hard. Her feelings did tell her that something was wrong—hadn't she felt it in Palpatine's office? She closed her eyes, suddenly terrified. If Palpatine couldn't be trusted, then everything was about to fall apart.


	5. Something Like Triumph

Padraig stepped out onto the open veranda, smiling at the sight of the familiar figure standing at the edge, looking out over the night lights of Coruscant. He had hoped the guest Captain Typho had announced would be Anneke. Though she had been onplanet for more than a week, they had seen each other only a handful of times.

Coming to stand beside her, he leaned against a pillar and unashamedly stared at his wife. "Beautiful, isn't it?" he asked.

She turned a smile on him. "Yes, it is."

Standing away from the pillar, he took her hands in his. "How are you feeling?"

She lowered her eyes, freeing one hand to cover her stomach. "He keeps kicking."

"He?" Padraig laughed.

She met his eyes, biting her lip before she said, "And so does she."

His mouth fell open. He blinked, then stared at her. "What?"

She slipped her other hand from his and covered her stomach with both her hands. "I just realized this morning. There's two of them. I guess I was too focused on shielding them before, or maybe they were too young to be distinguished as separate entities, but there's definitely two."

"Wow." Padraig hadn't felt this confounded even when she had first told him of the pregnancy. "Twins."

"Yes." She raised her head, her eyes shining. "I can't know for sure, but I think they're a boy and a girl."

A thought occurred to him. "If you can sense them more clearly now, is it harder to maintain the shields?"

She nodded, her shoulders hunching slightly. "If the Council wasn't so distracted by the war, and if Obi Wan…" She took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders.

His insides clenched. "What about Obi Wan?"

"He knows."

Padraig couldn't breathe. "How?" he whispered.

"I told him." She turned away, walking the short distance to the couches that circled the centre of the veranda. She stopped and stood beside a couch, her back to Padraig.

He followed her, his mind a whirl of chaos. "But… you said he couldn't know, that he would go to the Council…"

"Yes, I said that." She turned toward him, and her eyes were glistening with tears. "He already knew there was something going on, and he asked me straight out what it was. I couldn't lie to him."

"Of course not." He took her in his arms, pulling her close against his chest. "And the Council?" he asked quietly.

She shook her head against him. "He won't tell them. And they're too busy with the war—and the Chancellor's many proclamations—to notice anything. Yet."

The Chancellor. Padraig closed his eyes, remembering when Palpatine had been the Senator for Naboo and Padraig had been the new King, the youngest ever elected. They had seen things eye to eye then; they had both believed in democracy, in freedom. It was said that power corrupts, and if Palpatine was any example, it was true. "Have you ever considered that we may be on the wrong side in this war?"

She pulled back just enough to raise her eyes to his. "What do you mean?"

He took a deep breath. "What if the democracy we thought we were serving no longer exists, and the Republic has become the very evil we have been fighting to destroy?"

She stared at him, her eyes shadowed with dismay. "You sound like a Separatist."

He sighed. "I'm not saying they're right—and they did try to kill me, so their methods leave a lot to be desired—but maybe they're not completely wrong. The Republic is looking less and less like a democracy with every proclamation."

"Padraig, I…" She bit her lip, staring at her hands where they rested against his chest. "The Chancellor asked me to be his personal representative on the Jedi Council."

He frowned. "I bet they loved that." His old friend was making enemies everywhere he turned. "Why you?"

"I don't know, but I didn't feel that I could refuse him."

He took in a sharp breath. "Because we owe him." He sat down suddenly on the couch, pulling Anneke down with him. "Anneke, if we can no longer trust Palpatine…"

"No." She put a hand over his lips. "Don't say it."

He closed his eyes. "Anni…"

"I don't want to talk about politics," she whispered, laying her head on his shoulder. "Not now."

He tightened his arms around her, silently agreeing, wishing they could go back to the lake on Naboo, when there was nothing but their love. No politics… no plotting… no war.

* * *

><p>Anneke entered the Galaxies Opera House, hurrying down the hallway toward the Chancellor's private box. She clenched her fists to keep her hands from shaking.<p>

Palpatine reclined in a luxurious seat, flanked by two aides. He looked up as Anneke entered the private box, a smile of welcome on his thin lips. She repressed a shudder. "You wanted to see me, Chancellor?" she greeted him.

"Yes, Anneke!" He gestured expansively. "Come closer. Sit down. I have good news. Our Intelligence units have discovered the location of General Grievous."

She sat gingerly on the seat next to him, unsure what to say. "That's good. At last we'll be able to end this war."

He leaned in close as if sharing a confidence. "I would worry about the collective wisdom of the Council if they didn't select you for this assignment. You are the best choice by far… but they can't always be trusted to do the right thing."

"They do their best," she protested. No matter that she privately questioned many of the Council's decisions. This was different. Palpatine was not a Jedi, and couldn't be allowed to criticize them.

Palpatine eyed her speculatively, then flapped a hand at his aides. "Leave us." Turning back to Anneke as they moved to obey, he said quietly, "If they haven't included you in their plot yet, they soon will."

She frowned. Plot? What was he talking about? "I'm not sure I understand," she said stiffly.

"You must sense what I have come to suspect." He laid a hand on her arm; his skin was cold, almost reptilian. "The Jedi Council want control of the Republic… they're planning to betray me."

She stared at his hand; it was a dead weight on her good arm. The Jedi try to take over the Republic? It was absurd! "I don't think—"

He cut her off. "Search your feelings, Anneke. You know, don't you?" His colourless eyes caught and held hers.

She shook her head, tearing her eyes away. "I don't—"

"They asked you to do something that made you feel dishonest, didn't they?" His voice was soft, concerned, understanding, yet it gave her chills.

She stared at her feet. Obi Wan _had _asked her to report on the Chancellor's actions…

"They asked you to spy on me, didn't they?" he continued in the same kind, quiet tone.

All the breath left her lungs, and her gaze darted up to meet his. "I—"

He smiled gently. "Remember back to your early teachings, Anneke. 'All those who gain power are afraid to lose it.' Even the Jedi."

How did he know the Jedi teachings? "The Jedi use their power for good," she insisted.

He sat back in his chair, staring at the performers onstage, his hand finally sliding off of hers. "Good is a point of view, Anneke. And the Jedi point of view is not the only valid one. The Dark Lords of the Sith believe in security and justice also."

The Sith? The Sith were evil. Dooku had been a Sith, and Palpatine had praised her for killing him. Why did it sound like he was defending them now? Maybe it was merely an exercise in rhetoric; he was a politician after all.

"The Sith and the Jedi are similar in almost every way, including their quest for greater power," he continued thoughtfully. "The difference is the Sith are not afraid of the dark side of the Force. That is why they are more powerful."

"The Sith rely on their passion for strength." Still, hadn't she done that, at times? Passion was against the Code, yet she found strength in it. "They think inward, only about themselves." She didn't do that.

He turned back, a small smile on his lips. "And the Jedi don't?"

"The Jedi are selfless." Most of them were. Obi Wan was. Qui Gon had been.

His smile widened. "Why is it, then, that they have asked you to do something you feel is wrong?"

She swallowed. "I'm not sure it's wrong."

He shook his head, still smiling. "If you trust them so completely, you have no secrets from them, of course."

She said nothing, her thoughts floundering. He had helped Padraig keep their marriage from the Council. He _knew _that she had secrets.

"They will find out, you know," he continued, watching her through half-closed eyes, "and they will blame your master."

"What?" She felt as if she had missed part of the conversation.

He leaned forward and put his hand on hers again, and she barely restrained herself from pulling away. "He is the most obvious choice, don't you think?"

"For what?" she asked, baffled. Obi Wan couldn't have registered the marriage and kept it from the Council. He didn't have the security clearance, the ability…

"My dear," he said gently, bending towards her and curling his fingers around her wrist, "you are starting to show. It doesn't take a Jedi to see it."

Her mouth fell open and she stared at him in wordless horror. She had known she couldn't hide her pregnancy forever, but foolishly had not expected anyone to notice so soon.

He patted her hand, smiling in a manner he probably meant to be reassuring. "Don't look so terrified. I'm not going to tell anyone." When she didn't respond, he went on, "Did you ever hear the tragedy of Darth Plagueis 'the wise'?"

She shook her head, not trusting her voice.

He clicked his tongue thoughtfully. "I thought not. It's not a story the Jedi would tell you. It's a Sith legend. Darth Plagueis was a Dark Lord of the Sith, so powerful and so wise he could do things you would call impossible. They say he could use the Force to distort others' perception of reality to such an extent that he could make anyone believe anything. They also say he could bring those at the brink of death back to life."

Anneke swallowed hard. Those would be useful skills. "Many things are said of the Jedi as well. Not all are true."

He raised an eyebrow. "The dark side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be... unnatural."

"Maybe they're right," she muttered.

"But what is natural?" he asked. "Is it not natural to love, to marry, to have children? Is it natural to have to lie about it?"

She had no response to that. Defending the Jedi Code would be hypocritical now. She had already broken the Code by drawing on anger for strength. Maybe she could find a way to save Padraig from the death in her dreams, and to protect her children from exposure. It couldn't hurt to ask at least. "Is it possible to learn these things?"

Palpatine smiled, and there was a flicker of something like triumph in his colourless eyes. "Not from a Jedi."


	6. Twisted and Terrifying

Bright sunlight reflected off the armour of rank upon rank of clone troopers as they waited to board the Republic assault ship. The heat—which was admittedly nothing compared to Tatooine—didn't appear to affect them even in their heavy armour. Anneke stood beside Obi Wan as he also waited to board; the Council was sending him to Utapau to investigate Palpatine's report that General Grievous was there. She listened to the huge engines whine as they started up, trying to avoid her own thoughts. Being parted from her mentor felt as if she was losing her anchor. With everything that was going on right now, she needed him more than ever. But the Republic needed him, too.

"I should be going with you," she said quietly.

He turned toward her, a small smile on his face. "It may turn out to be a wild bantha chase." He squeezed her shoulder. "May the Force be with you, Anneke."

He turned to leave and something made her call out, "Master!"

He stopped and turned back. She took a deep breath. "I know I've disappointed you, Master, and I'm so sorry."

He shook his head. "No, Anneke. I'm only disappointed in myself. You have become a far greater Jedi than I could ever hope to be, and I couldn't be prouder." He turned away again, then stopped and said over his shoulder, "I have enough clones with me to take three systems the size of Utapau. I think I'll be able to handle the situation... even without your help."

She snorted a surprised laugh. "Well, there's always a first time."

He chuckled. "May the Force be with you, my friend."

She swallowed. "May the Force be with you, Master."

She stood for a long time after he disappeared into the ship, watching as the clones boarded, and the tanks and assorted weaponry were loaded. Only after the ship had lifted off and vanished into the sky did she turn away.

* * *

><p>The heat was so intense Anneke wondered that her blood wasn't boiling. Everything was hazy, blurred; on Tatooine, the air had often wavered like this in the heat, but not to this extent. She could just barely see that all about her, everything was a black and red and glowing orange haze.<p>

She took a step, and the loose black rock under her feet slid away, sending her stumbling and sliding down a slope towards a moving river of glowing molten rock. The heat grew more intense as she neared the lava, and she threw herself to her hands and knees to stop her uncontrolled slide. The sharp edges of the broken black rock bruised her knees and cut her hands.

The sound of footsteps crunching toward her brought her head up, and she was relieved to see Obi Wan. He didn't smile, though, or greet her. He unclipped his lightsaber from his belt, and activated the blade, his face still and set. There was something very wrong.

She pushed herself to her feet, swaying dizzily. "Master?"

He made no reply, only raised his glowing green blade, and she barely saw his intention in time to get her own blade up to block him. She retreated before him, slipping and sliding on the uneven footing. He advanced steadily, implacable and unstoppable.

She quickly tired, her lungs burning from breathing the toxic air, her mind and heart screaming _why_? Losing her footing, she went down on one knee, her lightsaber slipping from her grasp as she scrambled to stay out of the burning river.

Obi Wan stood over her, his face distorted by the thick, hot air into something twisted and terrifying. "It's over, Anneke," he said, his voice cold. "I have the high ground."

She tried to speak, but her voice stuck in her throat. She tried to stand, but her legs refused to move. She tried to draw the Force around her, but she couldn't feel it; it was as if she had lost the ability to touch it. Panic filled her, an inescapable dread that overflowed, shrouding everything in darkness. She fell sideways, her awareness slipping away.

Piercing agony sliced through her stomach and her vision cleared enough to see Obi Wan bending over her, lifting two infants into his arms. "You are lost," he said as he straightened to loom over her, his voice echoing strangely in her ears. Cradling her children, he turned and walked away, leaving her wounded, bleeding, and alone, as the darkness closed in around her.

"Anneke! Anneke!" A familiar voice cut through the darkness.

Her eyes flew open once again, her heart pounding—for a moment she couldn't reconcile what she was feeling and seeing. The heat, the lava, the broken black rock… all were gone. She was in the bed in Padraig's apartment on Coruscant, the sheets twisted around her and drenched in sweat. Padraig sat beside her, his face concerned. It was his voice that had brought her back.

Obi Wan's attack, the loss of her children… it was all a dream. Only a dream. She sat up and leaned against Padraig, shivering. He slid his arms around her and rested his cheek on top of her head.

It had felt so real, like the dreams of her mother before she died, like the more recent dreams of Padraig… but Obi Wan would never betray her.

"Anneke?" Padraig cupped a hand around one side of her face. "Should I double my security again?"

She stared at him, uncomprehending, then shook her head. "No. This dream wasn't about you." She closed her eyes and leaned into him. "It was only a dream this time."

Resting his cheek on top of her head, he wrapped his arms around her and held her close.

* * *

><p>Anneke entered Chancellor Palpatine's office, her steps hesitant though he had answered her knock with a cheerful, "Come in!" The Council had asked her to bring news of Obi Wan's mission to the Chancellor and Master Windu had specifically told her to watch the Palpatine's reaction for clues to his intentions. She didn't feel up to the task at all. She was always uncomfortable in Palpatine's presence; he knew the Council had asked her to spy on him, and she should have reported that to them right away, but she no longer knew whom she could trust.<p>

The office was shrouded in gloom, lit only by the city lights of Coruscant outside the window. Approaching the desk, she said, "Chancellor, we have just received a report from Master Kenobi. He has engaged General Grievous."

Palpatine sat behind his desk, his back to the window, casting his face in shadow. "We can only hope that Master Kenobi is up to the challenge."

She should be there with him. Here, she was accomplishing little, running messages between the Chancellor and the Council—it was a job for an initiate, not a knight.

He gestured for her to sit in the chair facing his desk. "The Council doesn't seem to appreciate your talents. Why won't they make you a master?"

She sat slowly, unsure what to say.

He leaned forward. "They don't trust you, Anneke."

It was unsettling that he could see her facial expressions, but she couldn't see his. She realized with a jolt that she couldn't read his emotions in the Force either.

"They see your future," he continued. "You will soon be beyond any of them. Let me help you. I can show you how the Force can be used to do things the Jedi have never dreamed of doing."

She frowned. She had thought he studied the Force only out of interest, not that he could actually _use _his knowledge. His Force presence gave no indication that he was actually Force-sensitive. "How much do you know of the ways of the Force?"

He leaned back in his chair, lacing his fingers across his stomach. "My mentor taught me everything about the Force… even the nature of the dark side."

She blinked, her emotions churning. "The… dark side?"

"Anneke, if one is to understand the great mystery, one must study all its aspects." His voice was calm and soothing, yet sent shivers of warning through her. "Be careful of the Jedi, Anneke. They fear you. In time they will destroy you. Let me train you."

She stood, glaring at him. "I don't want to be a pawn in your political game. The Jedi are my family."

He stood and leaned on his palms on the surface of his desk. "Only through me can you achieve a power greater than any Jedi. Learn to know the dark side of the Force, and you can save your husband and children from death—or worse."

"What?" She stared at him in shock and anger. Was he threatening her? All that talk of the dark side… She unclipped her lightsaber from her belt and activated the blade. "You're a Sith. Like Dooku."

The blue light illuminated his sly smile. "Dooku was merely my apprentice."

It shouldn't have been a surprise, but it she still felt like she had been punched in the gut. "We _trusted _you!"

He nodded, his smile turning gentle. "Are you going to kill me?"

She gritted her teeth. She certainly wanted to, but he was unarmed, and the last time she had killed an unarmed opponent, Palpatine had praised her. She wanted no part of anything _he _thought praiseworthy.

"I can feel your anger," he said. His voice was smooth and pleasant, almost charming . "It gives you focus, makes you stronger."

She shook her head. "No," she said, and turned off her lightsaber. "I will turn you over to the Jedi Council."

"Of course you should," he said agreeably. "But…" He raised a finger, "what will happen when they learn your secret? Can you protect Padraig _and _Obi Wan?"

She stared at him, her thoughts a whirl of confusion. Why would she need to protect Obi Wan? And what did he know of the danger to Padraig?

Palpatine was shaking his head sadly. "Master Kenobi knows nothing else but being a Jedi. When the Council expels him for a dalliance with his Padawan, it will destroy him."

Anneke took an involuntary step backward, her mouth falling open. _That _was what he had been talking about before! A sick feeling welled up in her. "You…"

His smile was predatory. "The power of the dark side can save everyone you love." He held her gaze for a few moments, then he sat down. "I'm not going anywhere. You have time to decide."


	7. A Fist of Iron

The setting sun over the rooftops of Coruscant slanted through the curved windows into Padraig's sitting room. He and five other senators sat in a loose circle, looking everywhere but at each other. They had come to discuss their concerns regarding the Chancellor's actions of late and no one wanted to be first to speak.

Padraig leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "We cannot let this turn into another war."

"Absolutely," Bail Organa said. "That's the last thing we want."

Mon Mothma added, "We are hoping to form an alliance in the Senate to stop the Chancellor from further subverting the Constitution; that is all."

Padraig nodded. "There is a Jedi I feel it would be wise to consult." Obi Wan would be a wiser choice than Anneke for this—while she was on the Council, she wasn't yet a Master and couldn't command the same respect.

But Mon Mothma was shaking her head. "We don't know where the Jedi stand in all this."

Fair enough, but they didn't know Obi Wan. Or Anneke, for that matter. "I know this Jedi. I trust him."

"Going against the Chancellor without the support of the Jedi is risky," the senator from Kuat, Giddean Danu agreed.

Senator Fang Zar of Sern shook his head. "We have so many senators on our side… when we present the 'Petition of the Two Thousand' to the Chancellor, surely that will persuade him."

"Yes." Bail Organa nodded in agreement. "Let us see what we can accomplish in the Senate before we include the Jedi."

Padraig sighed in frustration. He had seen how power had affected Palpatine, and he doubted his old friend and mentor would willingly give it up, no matter how many thousands had signed a petition. Yet he did owe Palpatine at least the chance to prove him wrong.

* * *

><p>Padraig stood in the Supreme Chancellor's office, trying to have hope that this wasn't a fool's errand. He had handed over the datapad that contained the "Petition of the Two Thousand", and now he waited while the Chancellor perused it, wishing that he had Anneke's ability to read people. Palpatine showed nothing of his reaction to the petition.<p>

Finally raising his eyes from the datapad, Palpatine smiled at Padraig. "I understand your reservations completely, Senator, and I assure you the appointment of Governors will in no way compete with the duties of the Senate."

Padraig nodded politely; they might be friends, but this was an official visit. "May I take it then, that there will be no further amendments to the Constitution?"

"I want this terrible conflict to end as much as you do," Palpatine assured him, "and when it does I guarantee an immediate return to democracy." His tone indicated that was the end of it.

Padraig however, didn't feel the discussion was over. "You are pursuing a diplomatic solution to the war, then?"

Palpatine's smile reminded Padraig of an indulgent parent humouring a child who won't stop asking questions. "You must trust me to do the right things, Senator. That is why I am here." He turned away, laying the datapad on his desk. "I thank you for bringing this to my attention, Senator." The dismissal was even clearer now.

Frustrated, Padraig turned to leave. He couldn't help but feel that this had been a colossal waste of time. Why should Palpatine give up his power just because Padraig asked nicely?

As he left the Senate building in the cool evening air, his thoughts turned to Anneke. They had both been so busy lately, and he hoped she would be able to get away from the Temple tonight to visit him. He missed her more sharply while she was here on Coruscant and not with him than he had while she was in the Outer Rim.

A sudden burning exploded in his chest, clutching his lungs in a fist of iron. He fell to his knees in the street while chaos erupted around him, cloudy figures running about while shouting something he couldn't quite make out, something about a shooting. Had he been shot? After all these years, had the Trade Federation finally caught up to him?

No. He couldn't die. Not now. Not when he had so much to live for. As his field of vision narrowed and the darkness closed in, he could only pray to all the gods of Naboo that he would see Anneke again.

* * *

><p>The night grew deeper as Anneke made her way to the hangar where an initiate had told her she would find Master Windu. She would have gone to Obi Wan, but he was still on Utapau, and in Yoda's absence, Windu was the ranking member of the Council. As she entered, Windu was about to board a gunship with three other Jedi Council members.<p>

"Master Windu!" she called, and he stopped and turned toward her. "I must speak with you."

"What is it, Skywalker?" He sounded impatient. "We have just received word that Master Kenobi has destroyed General Grievous. We are on our way to make sure the Chancellor returns emergency powers back to the Senate."

Obi Wan was okay, then. Relief washed over her, but she wouldn't let herself be distracted. "He won't," she said. "He won't give up his emergency powers." She took a deep breath. "Chancellor Palpatine is a Sith Lord."

Master Windu frowned. "How do you know this?"

"He knows the ways of the Force." She closed her eyes against the conflict within her. Could Palpatine help her? Was this a mistake? "He knows the dark side."

Windu's intense dark-eyed gaze pierced her. "Are you sure of this?"

She opened her eyes and nodded. This was the right thing to do. "Yes."

"This is worse than we feared." He turned toward the other Jedi with him. "We must move quickly if the Order is to survive."

"Master, the Chancellor is very powerful," Anneke interjected. "You'll need my help to arrest him."

But he was shaking his head. "For your own good, stay out of this. I sense much confusion and fear in you, Skywalker. Your judgement is clouded."

Palpatine was right: they didn't trust her. She clenched her fists, swallowing her frustration. "Yes, Master."

"Wait for us in the Council chamber until we return." He turned and boarded the ship, followed by the other Jedi, and it lifted off, turning towards the Senate building where Palpatine waited.

She watched the ship disappear, her fear growing. Obi Wan would soon return from Utapau in triumph, but how long would that last? Even if she told them the truth about Padraig, they would have little reason to believe her after all the lies she had told. And even if they did believe her, they would likely still expel Obi Wan for allowing this to happen, for not reporting her as soon as he found out.

And Padraig. What if those dreams were true? She didn't want to face life without him. If there was a chance that Palpatine could show her how to save him, she couldn't let that chance pass her by. Turning on her heel, she ran for her speeder.


	8. Full of Fear

Anneke leapt from her speeder outside the Senate building, running as soon as her feet hit the pavement. The corridors to the Chancellor's office had never felt so long. She drew on the Force, panic giving wings to her feet. Palpatine was sure to fight back, and if Master Windu was to kill him, her one chance to save Padraig and Obi Wan was lost.

Palpatine's door stood open, and the Force reverberated with the struggle that raged beyond it. Anneke caught the edge of the door frame as she ran, using it to swing herself inside without slowing. She nearly stumbled over a body on the floor—she barely registered it was one of the Jedi Windu had taken with him—her eyes locked on where Mace Windu stood over Palpatine, who crouched just inside one of the huge windows behind his desk; the window was broken, and nothing blocked the twenty-storey fall behind the Chancellor.

Palpatine's eyes found hers. "Anneke!" he called, his voice quavering. "I told you it would come to this. I was right!"

Windu glanced over his shoulder. "I thought I told you to stay in the Council chambers!"

Palpatine's hands came up, and crackling energy burst forth, catching the Jedi unprepared. Windu got his lightsaber up just in time to block it, sending it arcing back on its caster. The Chancellor's hands dropped as the lightning raced over him, twisting him in on himself. "I can't…" he wheezed. He gazed up at Master Windu, a pleading note in his voice. "I give up. Don't kill me."

Windu raised his lightsaber, the blade casting purple shadows across his dark face. Anneke was suddenly vividly reminded of her dream of Obi Wan—he had that same implacable expression that had been so out of place on her master. "You Sith disease," he said coldly. "I am going to end this here."

"You can't kill him, Master," Anneke protested. "He must stand trial." Her mind traitorously added, _he must help me _.

"He has too much control of the Senate and the Courts," Master Windu replied. "He is too dangerous to be kept alive."

Anneke shook her head, her heart pounding so loud they must be able to hear it. She had never defied a master like this before. She pressed her hands together to stop them shaking. "It's not the Jedi way."

"Don't kill me," Palpatine begged, raising a hand as if to block the blow. "Please."

Ignoring them both, Windu brought his lightsaber down in a quick slash, intent on ending the Chancellor. But Anneke was across the room in an instant, her blue blade blocking the downward sweep; sparks flew as the two lightsabers crashed together.

Windu stared at her, shocked. "What are you—" He broke off as crackling energy struck him, sending him into convulsions. He fell to his knees, swaying dangerously close to the edge.

Palpatine rose to his feet, his face twisted into a rictus of rage as the dark energy flowed from his fingers. Windu opened his mouth in a soundless scream, raising his clenched fists as if to push away the lightning that gripped him in chains of pain. But Palpatine was too strong—he flicked his fingers and Windu tumbled sideways through the broken window, disappearing over the edge of the heart-stopping drop. It had all happened so fast. Anneke leapt forward, reaching out to stop his fall, but her fingers closed on nothing. She stumbled to a halt, barely catching herself on the edge, her stomach plunging.

Snatching at the Force, she reached out, trying to catch his plummeting form, but her concentration was in tatters, and this was not so simple as lifting or pushing with the Force. This required an accuracy that escaped her shattered focus. He slipped through the net she tried to weave, tearing it to shreds.

"What have I done?" she whispered, watching as Master Windu spun like a leaf in the wind, disappearing into the distance below.

"Only what you must." Palpatine's voice was rough and creaking. She slowly turned toward him; his face had crumpled into a mass of wrinkles, as if he had aged years in the past few minutes. "I have recently had word," he continued, walking back to his desk, "that Senator Andelko was shot in the street earlier today."

Anneke forgot how to breathe. Padraig! _No!_

Palpatine sat down in his chair, his movements slow and careful. "The shooter—an assassin hired by the Trade Federation—is in custody." His eyes had become a sickly yellow; they were more unsettling than ever as they bored into her. "The Senator is in grave condition. He is not expected to survive the night."

She swayed on her feet, stumbling toward the desk. It wasn't possible. He must survive! "Help me. Please," she begged. "I can't live without him."

He smiled, a grin of triumph. "Become my apprentice, Anneke, and I will teach you everything I know about the dark side."

If she made this choice, Obi Wan would never understand—it was a betrayal of everything he believed in. If she did this, when she faced him again, it would be as his enemy. She closed her eyes, dragging a breath into lungs compressed by despair. What choice did she have? She couldn't allow Padraig to die. "I will do whatever you ask," she whispered, falling into the chair facing the desk.

"Good. Good." He leaned forward, his withered hands clasped on the mirrored surface of his desk. "Now, we must move quickly. When the Jedi learn what has transpired here, they will kill us, along with all the Senators."

She opened her eyes, pushing away the sickness that twisted her insides. She nodded mechanically. Of course the Jedi would kill her when they found out what she had just agreed to do—to be.

His eyes captured hers, his gaze intense. "Every single Jedi, including your friend Obi-Wan Kenobi, is now an enemy of the Republic. You understand that, don't you?"

She clenched her hands in her lap, her left thumb rubbing the metal fingers of her right hand. Every Jedi was now her enemy as well. Even Obi Wan. "I understand... Master."

"The Jedi are relentless; if they are not all destroyed, it will be civil war without end. First, I want you to go to the Jedi Temple. We will catch them off balance. Do what must be done. Do not hesitate. Show no mercy. Only then will you be strong enough with the dark side to save Padraig."

* * *

><p>Anneke strode through the Jedi Temple, a battalion of clone troopers spreading out behind her, breaking off in groups to search out and destroy every Jedi within the walls. She stopped just outside one of the training rooms; the troopers had disappeared, but the sounds of blaster fire echoed through the halls, bringing darkness and death to this place that was devoted to learning and light.<p>

She sensed several presences behind the door—young, bright beacons of light and innocence hiding from the menace she had brought into their home. She closed her eyes for a second, took a deep breath, then opened the door and entered the room.

A child stepped from the shadows to meet her, his clear blue eyes relieved as he recognized her. "Master Skywalker," he said hopefully. "There are too many of them. What are we going to do?"

She stared at him, then her eyes scanned the others who were slowly creeping from the shadows toward her, trusting her. Her new master had said to kill _every _Jedi. But… the younglings weren't yet truly Jedi. They couldn't have been part of the plot to kill the Chancellor and take over the Senate—they were too young.

She gripped her lightsaber where it hung at her belt, knowing that was not what Palpatine had meant. He wanted them _all _dead. One of the children in her womb chose that moment to move, reminding her that she was a mother, and she remembered the camp of dead, and the Tusken who had shielded her child with her own body.

She let go of her saber and went to one knee. "Listen to me," she hissed, waving the younglings closer. "Get out of here. Cut off your Padawan braids and run away. Don't look back, and don't trust _anyone_. Never come back, and never tell anyone who you are." A crowd of pale wide-eyed faces stared at her, unmoving. She rose to her feet, her lightsaber in her hand, the blue blade casting a cold light about the room. She put every ounce of anger she could summon into her voice: " _Go !_"

They went. Like ghosts, they fled silently, disappearing into the shadows, and she turned away, her jaw set. Palpatine would not be pleased if he found out she had spared the younglings, but she didn't care. She laid her free hand over her stomach in a protective gesture as she left the room.


	9. Steeped in Shadows

"You have done well, my young apprentice." Palpatine stood behind his desk, his usual Chancellor's robes gone in favour of a long black Jedi-style robe with a deep hood that left his face in shadow. It seemed he had stopped hiding what he was. "The Temple is empty of the Jedi traitors and, even as we speak, clone troopers are hunting down the last few scattered across the galaxy."

She nodded, but said nothing. If he wasn't aware of her disobedience in the Temple, she wasn't about to tell him. Perhaps he was not as all-knowing as he liked to pretend.

He sat down in the chair behind his desk. "Now, I have intelligence that Viceroy Gunray is hiding out in the Mustafar system with the other Separatist leaders. Go there and wipe them out, and we shall have peace."

Nute Gunray. The Viceroy of the Trade Federation; the one behind the attempts on Padraig's life. She would gladly wipe him out. But first, "You promised to show me how to save Padraig. I must see him before I go."

He shook his head, an expression of deep sadness creasing his face. "I am sorry to be the one to have to tell you, but I'm afraid he died. It seems his condition was more critical than I had been led to believe."

The world around her disappeared behind a red curtain of rage and despair. She clenched the inferno in her fists as she rose to her feet, and turned to go. Mustafar—and Nute Gunray—awaited.

Through the storm of anger and pain that overwhelmed her, she imagined she heard a soft cackling laugh as she left the room.

* * *

><p>Stepping from her small ship onto the loose black rock that passed for a landing pad on Mustafar, Anneke raised the hood of her robe and wrapped the Force around her like a shield, protecting her from the harsh, hot air. All was black and red and glowing orange. There was something very familiar about this place, a memory that slipped away in the overwhelming rage that consumed her in the knowledge that Padraig's killers were mere steps away from where she stood. Activating her lightsaber, she entered the main control centre for the mining operations—the only reason this planet had any inhabitants. The conditions were much too harsh here for most beings.<p>

The room was steeped in shadows, causing it to appear much smaller than it truly was. Anneke's blue blade illuminated expressions of shock and terror on the faces of Gunray and his cohorts. Good. They should be afraid of her.

Her heart as cold as the winds of Hoth, she cut through the unarmed, defenseless Separatists as they screamed and scrambled vainly for escape. She barely saw them, her eyes locked on Nute Gunray where he cowered in the back of the room, his large red eyes shining with fear.

When she stood over him, dead bodies scattered around her, she pushed back her hood with her free hand so he could see her face. "Do you remember me, Viceroy?" she demanded, making his title a curse.

He shook his head, whimpering.

She grimaced in disgust. "Nearly four years ago, I was assigned to protect the Senator of Naboo, Padraig Andelko… from you."

Realization dawned in his reddish eyes and his terror spiked, a flash of icy cold in the Force. "An–Andelko?" he quavered. "I don't know any—"

She cut off his lies: "You killed him!"

He raised his hands, shrinking back, babbling excuses and pleading, but she ignored him, bringing her blade down in a vicious slash that took off his head and one arm. She watched his body collapse, her hands shaking as she deactivated her saber. The rage that had compelled her to come here faded into emptiness.

* * *

><p>Silence had settled over the main control room, the silence of the dead. Anneke stood at the window, gazing out over the burning landscape, the searing rage of the planet's surface. Behind her, the bodies of the Separatists lay where they had fallen—where she had felled them.<p>

The fire in her veins had cooled, but the anguish in her heart had become physical, clenching her body in a tight fist. She bent over, clutching the edge of a control panel with her mechanical hand as a wave of pain rippled through her body. She closed her eyes. _Padraig… _Tears burned at her eyes, begging to fall.

A familiar presence tickled her awareness, and she opened her eyes as a Jedi starfighter came in for a landing outside. She straightened up. Obi Wan: the last person she wanted to face right now… or ever again. He would not forgive her… not this time.

As Obi Wan's boots touched the loose black rock that covered the ground, Anneke stepped out into the acrid air, watching him warily. He would be able to sense the darkness within her; how would he react? The sorrow in his grey-blue eyes leapt across the distance between them, stopping her in her tracks, somehow so much worse than anger. "You shouldn't have come," she said, flexing her mechanical hand next to where her lightsaber hung on her belt.

"I'm sorry, Anneke. I'm so sorry about Padraig." The heartache in his voice stung her deeply, but she buried the hurt behind a wall of anger.

"Don't apologize," she said through gritted teeth. " _You _ didn't kill him. The scum who did that is dead."

"Did killing him help?" he asked gently. "Do you feel better?"

"I will never feel better," she ground out. "_Never_."

He bowed his head. "I'm so sorry."

"Stop apologizing!" she shouted, both fists clenched at her sides. "I'm not your responsibility anymore! Can't you see? I'm your enemy now!"

It was as if she had hit him. The agony in his Force presence nearly took her breath away. "No," he whispered, shaking his head. "Anneke, _no_."

She spun away, her fists clenched, her breath coming in sharp gasps. "You don't know what I've done, Master."

"I saw the security recordings at the Temple." His voice was quiet, pained.

She sucked in a shaky breath. She had destroyed the recorder in the room where she had met the younglings—he would have seen only death. Perhaps that was best; he wouldn't have false hope that she could—or would—turn back. "Then you know."

"You have allowed the Sith to twist your mind," he said quietly. "You have become the very thing you swore to destroy."

Now she sensed the disappointment and betrayal she had expected. She blinked furiously. She would not cry. She would not show weakness. "You should go."

"Anneke," he said, his voice choked, "you know I cannot do that."

She closed her eyes. "Please," she whispered, her throat raw, "don't make me kill you."

"Anneke," he begged her, "don't do this."

A painful spasm swept through her, and she gritted her teeth, refusing to double over. Wrapping her anger around herself, she unclipped her saber from her belt and activated the blade. "I'm sorry, Master. I will do what I must."

* * *

><p>The heat was intense, the air thick with noxious fumes. Anneke advanced on her former master as he retreated along the catwalk, their lightsabers spinning and striking, green and blue sparks joining with the orange and black all around them. She was drawing more and more on the Force for the strength to keep going. Fatigue threatened to slow her reflexes, but anger overrode it… for now. She couldn't remember ever being so exhausted. Why would her body choose now to betray her?<p>

The catwalk ended at a tower that looked like it was used for collecting the lava for the mining operations. Obi Wan leapt onto the tower, landing easily and turning to face her as she joined him. As her feet touched down, another pain shot through her middle, sending her to one knee.

"Anneke!" Obi Wan took a step toward her, his lightsaber at his side, his voice sharp with concern. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing!" Her voice cracked, and she pushed herself to her feet, launching a vicious attack. He barely got his blade up in time to block her, stumbling back against the guardrail behind him.

As she pressed the advantage, the guardrail gave way, and he fell toward the molten river. Her heart squeezed painfully, but he flipped in midair to land on a flat piece of metal floating on the lava below. Furiously pushing away her foolish fear, she spun on her heel and jumped back to the catwalk, then onto a worker droid flying nearby. Clinging to the droid, she used the Force to turn it around and send it after Obi Wan.

As his makeshift raft approached the shore, he leapt onto the loose black rocks that littered the ground, and turned to face her. She stepped from the droid several feet downriver, her boots crunching on the treacherous ground, and she suddenly realized she had been here before—this was her dream. But Obi Wan's eyes were not cold and uncaring now—she couldn't bear to meet his anguished gaze as he waited for her.

Swallowing against the extreme dryness in her throat, she placed her feet carefully on the loose, jagged rocks. She had taken only two steps when another convulsion ripped through her, this one throwing her to her hands and knees. Her lightsaber flew from her grip as she hit the ground, and she heard Obi Wan's voice crying her name as if from far away.

Everything tilted around her, and she fell heavily to one side, scrabbling for a grip on the loose rocks, certain that she was about to slide into the lava. Running footsteps crunched toward her and then Obi Wan was on his knees beside her, lifting her in his arms, cradling her against his chest as if she were a small child. She closed her eyes, and the darkness took her .


	10. A New Hope (Epilogue)

Anneke's senses slowly returned, and she wished they hadn't. She hurt all over, a bonedeep ache that set her teeth on edge. Keeping her eyes closed, she reached out with her Force senses, searching for Obi Wan. He was no where near, but she detected another familiar presence, a dark shadow in the Force. How was Palpatine here? Where was Obi Wan? Where was here?

A sense of deep wrongness, of something missing, settled into her. The sense of her children, always so close, was gone. She reached out, searching frantically for them. There! They were alive, but distant. She had no sense of location or direction. She sat up suddenly, her eyes flying open. "Where are my children?!" she screamed, her voice raw.

Palpatine stepped into her field of vision, his face shadowed by the hood of his robe. "I'm afraid that Obi Wan has taken them." He bowed his head. "I am so sorry, my dear. I didn't reach you in time to stop him."

"_No!_" She glared at him, her fury more intense than ever before; her heart was a thermonuclear furnace, burning away everything inside her. "I must find them!"

He moved closer, clucking his tongue. "I understand your urgency, my dear, but it will take time to recover your strength." He put his hand on her shoulder, and gently yet inexorably pressed her back down onto the bed. "We will find Obi Wan. I promise you. We will make him pay."

* * *

><p>Obi Wan Kenobi landed his small ship on the desert sands of Tatooine, and sat for a moment with his eyes closed, remembering. It was hard to believe that the hopeful young woman Qui Gon had taken under his wing all those years ago had become the hateful creature Obi Wan had faced on Mustafar.<p>

He had last seen Anneke in the medical bay on Polis Massa after the emergency surgery that had delivered the twins—he could almost imagine she was still the Anneke he knew as she lay unconscious, no sign of hatred in her still features.

Yoda had insisted that the medics keep her asleep until they could decide what to do with her. He had not approved when Obi Wan had brought her to the outpost, but had allowed it for the sake of her children. While Yoda was deciding what to do with her, Obi Wan had remembered Anneke's stepbrother Owen who lived on Tatooine with his wife Beru.

"Where did I go wrong?" he whispered.

A soft sigh from the bundle beside him was his only answer. His gaze dropped to the tiny blue eyes peeking out from the folds of blanket, and a small smile curved his lips. Out of the greatest tragedy of his life the Force had given him a new hope in the form of two small children. Already their presence in the Force was strong, especially this one, who shone like a beacon of light. Because of this, he had taken to calling her Lucia, an old name from his homeworld meaning 'light.'

Her brother's Force presence was much more easily masked. The boy would be safe, growing up on Alderaan as Bail Organa's son, under Emperor Palpatine's nose as it were, the last place the Sith Lord or his apprentice would think to look.

Tatooine was more of a risk, with Anneke's connection to the planet, but Obi Wan couldn't keep Lucia with him, no matter how he wished he could. He knew nothing of children and it wouldn't be fair to her. She deserved more than he could give her, she deserved a family, and he was determined not to fail her as he had failed her mother. The Force had guided him here, to the small house where Anneke's stepbrother Owen lived with his wife Beru, where Anneke's mother had lived before her untimely death.

Lucia's aunt and uncle would be able to give her a stable home, and a family. Obi Wan wouldn't go far; he would watch over her to make sure that she stayed safe, to make sure that she had everything she needed. This time, he would trust the Force, a lesson he had learned painfully.

He opened the hatch and gently gathered Lucia into his arms, then carefully descended to the sands, keeping her face covered against the wind. She squirmed, protesting—she didn't like to have her face covered. He hurried toward the small house. Despite his many losses, despite his many failures, he allowed himself to hope.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Here ends Episode III. If you'd like to know what Obi Wan was doing while Anneke was unconscious, check out Deleted Scenes and Bonus Materials for A Shadow in the Glass._

_Stay tuned for Episode IV – coming soon!_


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